The Lord and His House
Luke 18:9-14
August 20, 2023 anno Domini
God is in his holy habitation; he settles the solitary in a home. Today’s parable takes place in the Lord’s house. Every house has rules and the Lord’s is no exception. And the rule of His house is singular – either He is the Lord or you are. And if you are lord, then you’re out of his house, you’re on your own, because a house can only have one lord.
This morning let’s take a look at the houses presented in the readings.
In the Old Testament reading Eve is lonely. She is solitary because she got kicked out of the Lord’s house. She wanted to be lord of her life and broke the Lord’s one rule. Thankfully for Eve, and for you, the Lord doesn’t want you to be alone. He wants you in communion, united with Him. He promised Eve a way back in to His house. Eve would have a son, and that son would be her Lord who would crush the Serpent’s head and bring her back into God’s good graces. Eve believed the Lord’s promise so when Cain was born she said, “I have gotten a man, the Lord.” The English translators added “with the help of” as a possible translation, “I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord” Cain wasn’t the promised son as we’ll soon see. Eve would have to wait a few thousand years until God delivered His promised son to Mary.
Adam and Eve had two boys at first and as we see their house was a house divided, brother against brother. What was the difference between Cain and Abel. It came down to their lords – who was running their lives? In whom did they have faith? Their lords were revealed in their offerings. Cain brought an offering. Abel brought the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. Cain thought of himself first. When he got a harvest, he paid off the balance on his new combine, bought a new pickup, put an addition on his house, and then gave an offering to the Lord. When Abel’s flocks gave birth, he slaughtered the Benton Country Blue Ribbon Grand Champion Lamb and gave the fattest, richest portion to the Lord. Then he looked after his family’s needs.
To all appearances Cain made the better choice. He left the field alive. The Lord even protected him from further harm. This is what’s deceptive about the Lord’s house and His rule. If you’re going to live in the Lord’s house, you need to be like Abel. You need to die. Abel died long before Cain killed him. Abel died when he believed the Lord would take care of all his needs even if he gave the first fruits to the Lord. By faith Abel offered his fruit fruits. Cain may have walked out of the field alive, just as the Pharisee walked out of the temple appearing to be the better man, but looks can be deceiving, because faith is not by sight.
In today’s Epistle reading Saint Paul tells us the reason we’re in the Lord’s house. Jesus is Lord, your Lord. Jesus died for your sins. He was buried for you. He was raised on the third day for your justification. His resurrection is no Springtime, New birth myth like we hear every Easter on the Saint Cloud Times opinion page. Jesus’ resurrection, His Lordship is historical fact. We have a list of 500 witnesses to His resurrection. He appeared to Cephas, to the twelve, to more than five hundred, to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all to sinner Saul.
Like Abel, to get into the Lord’s house, Saul had to die. The risen Lord Jesus blinded his eyes on the road to Damascus. Saul died and Paul arose, led to Jesus by others, baptized in the name of Jesus. Jesus opened his eyes to see that his former way of life, of riches and fame and power had to die. Now by the grace of God, by the gifts of Jesus, he is what he is, a suffering servant of Jesus, offering his body to death for the sake of the Gospel.
This is what it means to trust Jesus as your Lord. It means to believe that on the cross He took all your sins away, that He rose again, and to believe that for His sake God has declared you righteous. In Christ you are forgiven. You are justified before Your Father. Everything that is wrong in you and by you has been set right by Christ’s death and you’re in – in the Lord’s house, in His Kingdom, under His rule, because Jesus is your Lord.
Finally, we come to the Gospel reading and the Parable Jesus told to all us Cains, who trust in our own righteousness and look down on others.
The Pharisee was the good man, perhaps the best man in town. He went to seminary and preached God’s Word. Everyone looked on him and said, “There’s a righteous man.” But he wasn’t righteous. He was lord with a small “l” of his own life. Just listen to his sermon, “I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, I give tithes of all I get.” I, I, I. Who does this man believe in? Who is his lord? He is and God better pay attention.
The tax collector was not a good man. He was a tax and spend liberal. He overtaxed the people and spent the money liberally on himself. Just like our politicians he porbably taxed more than the Lord – he demanded more than 10%. When you want more than the Lord, what does reveal about your lord? Thankfully, God isn’t prejudiced against government thieves. By the working of God’s Holy Spirit, the tax collector realized he was Cain and Saul. He realized he was all alone and being lord of his own life was not good. He was killing his neighbor through theft and coveting and lusting. He was all alone. He didn’t even rule over himself. Sin did. So, the Spirit called him by faith to die to himself and live by faith in His Lord. The only thing he said of himself was, “I’m a sinner.” “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.”
You want to be lord of your life, but being lord isn’t all the Devil advertises it to be. It sounds great to make your own rules, run your own life, establish your own identity, but in reality being your own lord leads to a solitary life of sin and suffering. You’ll soon discover that you’re not a very big lord and so you have to put everyone else down, like Cain put down Abel, like Saul put down the Christians, like the Pharisee put down the Tax Collector.
God’s Word tells us about the better Lord, the Lord of life, the Lord who is large enough not only for Himself but for the whole world, the Lord whose blood is sufficient to atone for your sin, whose life is your righteousness, whose death and resurrection kills the sinner and resurrects a real human in you by faith. This Lord is large enough that when you believe in Him, you’re no longer alone. He sets the solitary in a home – His home, with the 500 witnesses to the resurrection, the great unnumbered multitude of those robed in white, washed in the blood of the Lamb, already delivered from this great tribulation. When Jesus is your Lord then you’re in His great house. He exalts the humble and He sets the solitary in a home, His home, in the name of Jesus. Amen.